We all know what it’s like to be confronted with a dizzying array of dishes at the cai fan or nasi padang stall. And trying to show restraint by only ordering one meat and two veg, but still being slapped with a heftier-than-expected bill anyway ‘cos your veg with bits of minced meat turned out to be classified as a pricier meat dish after all. Well, hopefully there’ll be less of that now with the colour-coded price labelling system introduced by the Consumers Association of Singapore (CASE) together with food court chain Koufu at its economy rice stalls. This initiative has recently been expanded to nasi padang stalls, starting with heritage brand Hjh Maimunah, which started using the coloured price tag system at one of its outlets.
The trial run began two weeks ago at Hjh Maimunah’s newest ‘mini’ outlet at Kopitiam food court in Parkway Parade. The brand currently operates nine food court stalls — known as Hjh Maimunah Mini — at food courts like Food Republic and Koufu, plus two restaurants.
The colour-coded price labels will only be implemented at Hjh Maimunah Mini food court outlets, and not at the two standalone restaurant locations at Jalan Pisang and Joo Chiat.
What do the colours mean?
All dishes are tagged with a colour to indicate their price, ranging from $1.50 to $4.50. Green ($1.50) is typically for vegetables. Orange ($4) and red ($4.50) are for main dishes like chicken or beef, while mid-priced tags like those in purple ($3.50) are used for side dishes such as paru (beef lung).
What about the “ask us” tag in grey?
The grey tags labelled “ask us” are for seasonal or promotional items, such as the $5.50 Mee Goreng.
Maria Didih, 38, one of the three second-generation owners and Operations Director of Hjh Maimunah restaurant explains: “Actually, dishes like Mee Goreng are already listed on the menu with their price; the tags are just an additional step.”
Grey tags can also apply to dishes that fall outside the typical price range, like the more premium grilled fish ($6.50) and grilled stingray (from $8.50).
Food prices at the two restaurants are the same as at the ‘mini’ food court outlets. The only difference is that the restaurants don’t offer set meals — all dishes are sold a la carte there.
Why not label the individual dishes by price to save customers time? Maria told CNA that labelling so many dishes (sometimes up to 50) would confuse customers. She added that some dishes may have different prices for larger portions or takeaway orders, too.
8days.sg’s experience
So, does this new system make ordering easier, or does it just add to the confusion?
We noticed the smallish A5-sized price chart near the cashier because we were specifically looking out for it. However, we’ve heard some folks say that they only spotted it after ordering their food. The coloured tags where each dish’s name is bordered by a specific colour can be a bit tricky to decode at first. Maybe the colours aren’t quite prominent enough — especially when seen through the glass display and under glaring lights. We found ourselves mixing up the green and grey tags, since they looked quite similar. That made it harder to quickly pick out our order, especially when we felt the impatient gaze of folks lining up behind us. We resorted to shamelessly asking the staff: “Which are the cheapest items?”, to speed things up.
Moreover, with such an overwhelming number of dishes laid out (around 30) during our visit, it took some brain work to cross-reference the chart, calculate and decide on the spot. We ended up feeling a little flustered by the whole process.
What we ordered
We tried two plates: a more affordable plate featuring two vegetables and one meat combo, and a ‘boujee’ plate with seafood, meat and veg.
Budget plate for $7.50
This is the second cheapest combo for a serving of nasi padang here (the lowest-priced option for $5.50 is a meatless one with three side dishes or vegetables). It came with Sambal Goreng Jawa (stir-fried tempeh and tofu; $1.50), Kobis Goreng (stir-fried cabbage; $1.50), Sambal Goreng Pengantin (diced beef and lung; $3.50) as the protein, and rice.
A simple but hearty meal — the paru (lung) was tender with just the right amount of chewiness, and the accompanying sauce a perfect balance of sweet and salty. The tempeh was flavourful and made a great addition to the plate too. That said, we would probably splurge a couple of bucks more for a heftier main dish like chicken or beef rendang if we were really hungry.
Splurge plate for $11.70
This ‘boujee’ plate heaved with Ayam Lemak Chilli Padi ($4), Sotong Hitam (squid in black ink; $4.50), Sayur Lodeh with tofu ($2) and rice of course — the most expensive combo during our visit. We got a juicy drumstick drenched in creamy lemak gravy and succulent, inky sotong that was very spicy. Worth it if you have $11.70 lying around.
Colour-coded pricing to be implemented at other outlets over next few weeks
Maria shares with 8days.sg that the colour-coded tags will be rolled out at the other eight ‘mini’ outlets in the coming weeks.
“There has been mixed feedback from customers on the new pricing system,” she says. While some appreciate the transparency and how it helps prevent misunderstandings between customers and staff, others think it’s too confusing”.
Mixed reviews from customers
“For example, Sayur Lodeh is priced at $1.50, but sometimes customers want to add tofu, thinking it’s included — but it actually costs an extra $0.50,” she adds.
“Some might mistake certain dishes for sides when they’re actually more premium items,” Maria continues.
Why do some nasi padang stalls tend to charge inconsistently? “In F&B, food cost always fluctuates — sometimes on a weekly basis,” she says. “But for us, we want to make things work [by pricing our food consistently] so we can maintain fairness. This helps foster loyalty and trust between customers.”
Despite some mixed reviews, Maria says that the coloured tags have “made internal operations smoother” and customers usually need time to get used to new ideas, anyway.
“It has been easier for us to train new staff on our pricing. So far [there hasn’t been] any disputes with our customers,” she shares. The colour-coded price system helps staff communicate more efficiently. For example, they can quickly direct customers to complete their set meal orders by choosing vegetables with green tags, making it easier to spot and serve.
Our verdict
The new system does help to some extent — especially if you’re on a tight budget and want to ensure you don’t overspend. The downside? It can make you feel like you’re racing against the clock while trying to match the sometimes-hard-to-decipher coloured tags on specific dishes to the price chart when there’s a queue breathing down your neck.
Hjh Maimunah Mini has nine outlets including 80 Marine Parade Rd, #B1-85 to 87/112/146 146A Kopitiam at Parkway Parade, S449269. Open daily 10am to 9pm. More info via website and Instagram.
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